Finding Yosef by Rabbi Shmuel Goldin

we are at the point where we're going to encounter a new character in our studies where we're going to deal with Yosef now as a disclaimer as a disclaimer let's note that the Torah does not give us biographies of its Heroes someone once said to me you know you could read the entire Torah and not know mo the color of moshe's eyes Torah only tells us what we need to know about the individuals inter terms of what they are teaching us and it's very very unusual to find more than that in the text Yosef is an exception there is a great deal found within the text that speaks to us about Yosef and we can put together a picture of who he was but it's going to be a very complex picture and that's what we're going to focus on today take a look at the first thing we learn about yoseph and that carries through throughout the story throughout his story in the text first thing we learn is that the man is the Great American success story basically wherever you put y he rises to the top over and over and over again the Torah introduces this idea when it says to Mar again a statement that is not usually found in the text yoseph was beautiful Visage and beautiful to be seen basically a very very impressive guy who wherever you put him let's look at the various places number one is called right he's the favorite Child in yakov's home second second section he is down now in in the in Egypt as a servant as a slave and he's once again chosen by the master now there an unbelievable word in the text again what's successful over and over and over again right so we have is a good-look fellow who Rises to the top over and over again he is Accused by potifar wife of of trying to seduce her he gets thrown into the dungeon what happens in the dungeon no Rises to the top take a look at the Anar who hasem over and over again this is the man this is the guy you want on your side this is the fellow who is going to make it in whatever setting you put him next the last Source on the first page last source is of course when parro turns to him and says a Noone after he tells the dream interprets paro's dreams it says VOS there's nobody nobody here that is as brilliant as you are as wise as you are this is parro speaking to to a to a slave somebody that's just been raised from the dungeon so that's number one number one is y is an is Torah tells us number two next page we are aware that he is a a man of very positive moral fiber how do I know that because once again what happens is the Torah tells us of an event the event is puar's wife tries to seduce yose and over and over and over again every day he refused uses now this is this is tremendously difficult situation for him right he's trusted by by potifar he's trusted by the house by the head of the household the wife however is is trying to seduce him she's refusing her she's not going to take that lightly as we know and he does he's he's in trouble but once again he's a man who not only is mat but of of very very clear moral fiber however at the same time he's a man who engages in questionable Behavior right we know that let's take a look L aam what the number Roman numeral three on page two what he hangs around with his his half Brothers with brothers that are from the from the servants and he brings back he's a tattletail he brings back what he perceives to be and the rabbis discuss what it is that he's bringing back and it's not so clear that it was what what he thought but he's bringing back an evil report a bad report to his father he wants the father to know that they're not behaving themselves certainly not a way to what influence people and Win Friends correct next y dreams a dream tells that dream to his brothers and they hate him even more and what does he do right so once again you have a situation where a man who is clearly a successful man but at points in his life engag is in questionable activity activity that would not win him popularity and certainly seems to be going against the grain of someone who is mat what does he do when the brothers come down he deliberately deliberately makes himself appear as a stranger he says I I know who you are I know who you are but he's not going to give give that give that out yet what he's simply doing at this point is he's telling the the brothers that they are spies he accuses them of spying he accus does all sorts of things puts them through machinations that are extremely extremely difficult right he he accuses them of being spies he lets them buy wheat and what does he do with the wheat and the money for the wheat he puts it both back in the in the so that that when the brothers go back to yakov's house they'll open up they'll say oh my God we thought we use this money to buy wheat it's there we got the wheat and the money what's we can't go back there we that's no good that's ter and what does he do when they come back the first thing that anybody remember he makes a big party makes a big party and gives them seats of Honor until he then frames who pami so what's going on here what kind of person why is he doing this what kind of person is yose and what is the final verdict that the rabbis will place upon him in terms of the nature of who he is if you take a look at page number three rabbis are clear uh no page page three four the verdict yose well that is that is the appellation that is placed upon Yosef by kazal Yosef ultimately is the sadic and the question that I'm posing for you today is what aside from that one event where he rejects potifar wife's U opportunity him except for that what makes him aoic what makes him aoic he he's successful he wins he does well he didn't punish his brothers well that's that's the end he doesn't at the end of the story doesn't punish his brothers but throughout the story is that the only thing that makes him aonic to God as God is responsible for his okay so what we what you're suggesting is is correct basically what we need to do to really understand yosef's sidus is we have to understand the Monumental change that takes place in the man God relationship when he appears on the scene what is different when it comes to Yosef in terms of his communication with Hashem how does it differ from his father and his grandfather God never speaks to him exactly God never speaks to him God is silent KES is silent when it comes to Ys does appear God appeared to Yakov when he was running away from asov in beel right God appeared to to abam over and over again when when it comes to Y he's thrown into the pit does God say to him don't worry no not not a sound silence he's thrown into the dungeon this is KB say to him but what does he do and that's what you were suggesting over and over right over and over and over that take a look the the most immediate one is when he responds to Po's wife I'm looking at the rationale on page three look at this points it out this is an amazingly powerful he refuses he says to my my master trusts me implicitly everything that he has he has made me in charge of no one is greater in the household in terms of power and no one and he has held nothing back from me this is amazing held nothing back from me aside from you now what would you think would be the next word the poar right he trusts me he trusts me he's given me power he's done all these things he's only held back you how could I do this and I and and sin towards him him he brings in God deliberately over and over again take a look at the next stages next times come to the bottom of page three we come to the situation in the the events in the in the in the dungeon oh all right okay four it should be section five IR rationale I have different pages you see it got it right okay so we read the first paragraph the second paragraph on the page under the rationale is when the servants come to him in the dungeon for him to interpret their dreams what does he say V he sees that these the Butler and the baker he sees that they're unhappy about something and he says to them what's the matter and they say we dreamt a dream and no one can interpret it and what does yose say hello leim Pon sa isn't it true that ponim that the the trans translations of the dream the interpretation of the dream belongs to God I I think I might be able to speak with him somehow I might or it might be a he might give me uh Insight he could take credit for this he could say nobody's better than me at interpreting dreams why is he bringing in Hashem keep going next next paragraph I'm sorry that the pages are different I dream to dream and nobody can interpret itan bill or not me elim God will take care of this he'll tell us imagine you're a slave you've just been dragged out of the of the dungeon you're standing before parro you have the ability to do something that he really wants and and and interpret his dream what are you going to do if you're Joseph you should say I'm good at this par you no one's better what does he say no God will take care of it God will take care of it so over and over and over again in a world where God is silent yoseph attributes success to God and morality to God and everything that comes with it he interpreted the dreams in in the dungeon right right right in the end so let's say God gave him Insight interpretation right correct and with power same thing absolutely absolutely but the point that I'm saying is that in his communication with those who are approaching him he could take credit for this and it would be another another step upward for him we could turn to parro and say I'm really good at this now perhaps one could argue that politically this is a wise thing to do that you know being a slave in front of parro you're not going to boast too much you're not going to because parro will then be concerned about your potential to to rebel against him or to the power that you have so one could argue that when it comes to parro there's a certain wisdom to diminishing your role and and heightening God's role but it that would be true if this were the only event every event yes A's behavior when he a dramtic difference in y behavor when he is inter dreams brothers and interpr the dreams after he's downfall right he's learned something he learned something correct correct he learned something from that he he didn't learn it after the first Dream but he learned it by the second what that he can now use correct you learn exactly all right V all right so we did on that now finally and most powerfully what does he do when he finally reveals himself to his brothers and they are frightened to to be to be in his presence what does he do he again says God don't you worry about the fact that you sold me into slavery don't feel bad about it because God maneuvered events so that I would be able to keep you alive during the famine everything is in in God's hands now this becomes very very important when we consider yoseph as an individual as someone we see why he is an is and we see why he is uh but it's also extremely important when we look at it in a historical context yoseph is the transitional figure between what between the period of the OS and imos and the national period of Jewish of Jewish history let's understand something and since we're at this juncture I wanted to take a little move aside a little bit make a couple of points Jewish history does not begin once it begins twice it begins with the onset of the era of the Yos andos the individuals and when does it begin again when Ben Israel are as a nation slaves slaves and coming out of coming out of Egypt correct the Torah could have begun and this is rash the first Rashi in in the text says this why doesn't the Torah begin with the first Mitzvah given to CL Israel what's that first Mitzvah right why does the Torah have sorry they weren't ready they weren't ready so but I'm not asking why the Torah wasn't given before I'm asking why the Torah text itself even bothers to tell us about Theos we're not a nation yet we're are they Jews okay excellent excellent so what you're saying is but I want us to recognize this that we are there is a period of time pre-national pre-national where it's establishing the individual relationship with God right and there were other things other things that are given to us through the era of Theos number one yor there's a balance between individual and community every society every society has to figure out how to how where that balance lies right and the because those two Powers potentially work against each other right I'm not allowed to Y I'm I I live in a world where I have Free Speech but I can't yell yell fire in a crowded theater famous famous example why not free speech because there are societal needs that will impinge upon the free speech and works the other way as well the community wants to have all sorts of laws you have to respect individuality you have to figure that out and how the a community balances these two Powers determines the nature of the community the first two civilizations that the Torah speaks of the civilization of the Maul and the civilization of DFA the dispersion of B if you look carefully at how the rabbis understand their sins what you find is that each of them is at the opposite end of the spectrum when it comes to J what did the rabbi say the Torah says they are guilty of violent theft guilty ofas right all right another another prophetic nature right determination paganism and monism I'll get to that didn't that Define I'll get to that stay with it all right no no no good excellent so one so if you take a look at the damul the rabbis say what was their sin what was it like the rabis say that the an own someone had had a bunch of grapes or a bunch of nuts or something small but a whole bunch walked down the street as he walked down the street every onlooker did what took one took one like you do with oan right took took one so anytime anytime you will turn to any of those individuals and say to them listen you're you're stealing what are you what are you talking about what are you talking about I took one grape but by the time you get to the end of the of the of the pathway you have no grapes so what's happening is that Civilization the sin is is weed towards individualism at the expense of the community right in other words you can't have a society where everybody's going to take one gra but everybody has the right to take one gra sort of so what you have is a society that will not exist and has to be destroyed what does the Society of the Doro the generation of dispersion what is their sin well there are various different interpretations what basic were unied irrespective right okay exactly right the highest priority was the communal or national the only priority individual exactly what did the rabbi say what did the rabbi say about the dorao they say that there were seven steps up to the top of the uh the building that they were making and seven stages down everyone would take a brick and go up the up the the up staircase right put it on the top and come down the down staircase everything was fine if a person fell off the tower say the rabis a person fell off the tower what what was their reaction didn't pay attention if a brick fell off the tower then what they went into Aus they went into AOS so what you what you see the rabbis are telling us something here The rabbis are saying they sin at the opposite end of the spectrum there this is a society where all that matters is the society and not the individual look at how each of these two societies eventually are punished the dul that the generation of the flood where the individual was the problem right because it's too IND too P much power for the individuals you have to destroy the entire Civ civilization you can't you cannot allow that kind of civilization to exist what about D the problem is the society not the individuals so how do you punish it and and correct it destroy what the society right the individuals are spared you're just destroying the society because their problem is the stress they place on society over individual after you have those two civilizations and they are presented one second what Society without how do you destroy Society with what because what God did God I'm sorry I should have said it what God did is he confused them through their their languages and the society was unable to stay right in other words there was that's where Babel comes from right in other words the the idea was that I have I found a way to destroy the society and spare the individuals now someone had hand up yes wouldn't there be some kind of different maybe the one who walked down uhuh he wasn't planning on we just wanted to right go right the one in oer they have you know 15 kinds of something and they they are not so against I think I'll check on it because if people taste it maybe they'll buy it buy it maybe and they'll say oh that one's much too hurry for me I don't want that one I want to buy right look again we're not I'm not passing judgment yeah of course there's a difference of course there's a difference right in other words it it it is is it acceptable you'd have to ask the store but if they don't mind they don't mind there the fundamental difference between yeah okay you do that you'll bring you'll bring us back next week uh the information all right so we'll know whether we can continue to continue to take take rapes all right so yoseph yoseph is the figure of transition from the period of the OS the period of the OS is a period of individualism it's a period where what is stressed what is stressed is the all of Jewish history is summed up by Abraham and Sarah's life all of Jewish history at that particular time lies in the individual and therefore Yosef will be this the transition that will move us from the period of the individual to the period of the community right and that will once again create the balance and think of what we do how we constantly balance y Andor in our worship in our how do we D let's talk about it you're D with a minion right right have with a minion but what is the most important F you say the how are we supposed to say it individual that's right quietly you're supposed to say it it's an individual commu communication with with a you're not supposed to say it loud enough for someone else to hear you have to say it only loud enough for you to hear it whis whisper all right so look I'm in this great Community but I'm focusing on the individual but when I that individual prayer that I recite quietly is it in the is it in the singular or the plural plural it's always in the plural right so even though this is my private communication with the kades right and then after you do that and you say that privately what do we do we then repeat the amida publicly as a community and what we're trying to do is continue to balance continue to balance Y and because that's that will determine the nature of the society that we're Torah society that we're willing to create so yosea is this transition hold on one second I just want to take a quick set hold I'm taking some medicine that's drying out my mouth so okay all right so y now there is going to be a the number one he's a transition from y right he's also the transition from a time when God speaks to a time when God is silent that will be mirrored by an event later on in Jewish history what holiday what holiday celebrates the period of time when after we became a nation God was suddenly silent huh our poor him correct po him no I'm yeah I'm saying right that that was part of the time when God was still speaking God speaks to the nation at harini he speaks to the prophets that he sends to communicate with them God continues to speak until you get to por him when you get to PO him what happens nobody God doesn't speak to morai doesn't at least that that we know about it doesn't speak to Esther right it is a time of H upon him it's a time when God hides his face prophecy was definitely over and prophecy that's correct prophecy is over at that point and now we that is the beginning of the period that we continue to live in right which is would be really nice if God spoke to us but we have to believe in him and attribute to him everything that occurs like yoseph did that's our that's the challenge of amuna that's the challenge of finding a way to bring God into a world where he is silent and I want to show you over and again that this connection between porm and yoseph is not something that I'm pulling out of the Hat take a look at yeah sorry is hasem silence is it because maybe we're not worthy of the commun communication or is it because we've developed sufficiently so that we don't need it as okay so my answer is maybe in other words I either of those possibilities exist but what it seems to me is when you teach a child to walk you hold the child's child's hand if you never let go the child will not learn to walk so what seems to be happening is god holds our hand until we get to pour him and at that point once we get to PO him he backs away so it doesn't it could be because of our sins but it could also be because this is the way he's training us and and it's but it's aaric reality it's aaric reality that one once pum comes there's no more communication no no more prophecy take a look at the first paragraph um in historical perspective all right this paragraph is speaking about y's treatment of his brothers once they reveal he he reveals himself to them and what he does which is very very seems not to be too smart what he does is he gives them each a certain amount of of of valuable clothing or or whatever it is but he gives binyamin much more right much more and the the rabbis asked wait a minute is it possible that the very thing that caused pain to Yosef will be the the thing that he or the specific act that he will now do on his own what the rabbis continue is say that so the I'm sorry y's treatment by his father where his father gave him more served to create real problems so why would yoseph now give more to Benyamin isn't he going go doesn't he realize he's going to increase their jealous he testing brother what P he's testing his brothers the rabbis will say though and this is a medish this is not rabbis say why is he giving him five times uh clothing because one day in the future one of his progeny will be will be honored by giving five types of Royal clothing who who were they talking about right okay take a look at the next page next entry and here I don't even need the rabbis to talk to me God takes the uh um Sparro takes lav the ring from his finger and he gives it to Yos who does that remind you of what exactly and and he has him taken out paraded through the streets in the Royal carriage and this is certainly very very very parallel to what happens with more once he rises to the top the rabbis have a wonderful way of explaining or indicating this period again this period yose on the one hand and in later history puim on the other is it's extremely important turning point so take a look at the bottom of the page of historical perspective we're at har say the rabis right it's famous for Med what's happening God is holding the mountain over their heads right and he says to them take if you accept the Torah all fine and dandy if you don't this is going to be your burial spot now why do the rabbis do this this this takes what from the text seems to be a totally voluntary acceptance why are they saying that he lifted up the mountain and and I know kids who've learned this who take it very literally and that's why it's it I think when we teach medish when we teach medish we have to teach what a medish is aish is rinic um rinic statements on wide array of things a wide array of topics based on the text finding a clue in the text for and they're not saying this is the interpretation it's not the P shot but this is the lesson we want you to learn we want you to learn X we want you to learn Y and they don't always tell us what the lesson is we have to figure out the lesson for ourselves it's so important I I was teaching a class at is University years ago and this was a group of students who were had not gone through the Yeshiva route this was a group of students who were coming to Judaism later in life but they had they they had heard some stories for example so I said to them it says in the medish that the sun and the moon were created the same size right the moon complained and God then diminished the moon so I said how is that what happened they said yeah that's the rabbi say I say how many of you how many of you believe that the moon can talk I said how many of you believe that in order to be an orthodox Jew you have to believe the moon can talk or can I take this Bish for what it is which is a statement of on jealousy etc etc whatever lessons they wanted us to learn and I said further to them and now now it's even more true unfortunately I said if you were I'm asking you these questions or pointing out these things in the safety of a room in yiva University if you were on a college campus and somebody said to you do you believe the moon can talk you wouldn't know how to answer right so therefore when we learn medish we have to understand that the rabbis are teaching us something in a in a fashion through a story in a fashion through observations so what are they saying here they're saying that God held the mountain over the heads of CLA Isel and then they go on and say at the the end of the section no nonetheless when did we finally accept the Torah without being forced to accept right P him so what what's why are the rabbis putting it this way so many miracles that their freedom of choice freedom to to believe exactly that's how in order to voluntary agreement to exactly exactly basically what are the rabbis saying the rabbis are being completely honest in terms of of the historical events did the Jews have did the Israelites not the Jews yet did the Israelites have the opportunity to say no When God said to them will you accept the Torah listen the mountains on fire thunder and lightning sounds of a chauffeur God's voice will you accept the Torah no no not going to take right they the circumstances forced them to accept when do we finally accept say the rabbis and they're showing real historical awareness here when do they finally accept they finally accept when we enter that period where God is silent and period where God is silent once again forces them to look and to determine will I believe when God is silent will I believe when he doesn't appear to be part of my life will I bring him into my life these are things that that are actually the challenges that we have because we are part of that generation we're part of that period which is the period the national period of God's silence and in times like this it's very hard times like this God's forefather of when God is silence yes we are we will obey God we will be yph that Joseph's example as the individual who makes the transition from one era to the next and who continues to believe in God and not just believe in God but bring him into the story say whatever is happening here God manipulated these events God wants this to happen Ys is yose that's why he's was given this opportunity to get to I'm not sure I understand spoke to right and that was right did not he didn't he didn't speak did not speak to yoseph never Joseph dreams dreams but God never appears in the dreams no that's what I'm saying but y was somehow being compatible with what Hashem Jose Joseph is saying I live in a time where God is silent but I don't but that does not mean that he's absent right he's silent and that challenges me to bring God into the picture over and over and over again and that's what he does question why in the first part does it say um and um and that um Israel loved yose more than all of his children in instead of calling Israel yob okay so the the answer to that is is not necessarily um trying to think of the way to put it there are probably a number of answers to that right what what we said in class is that yakov's name gets changed to Israel but it never does that does stick right in other words the very next Pim he's Yakov again and what what happens is if you look carefully at the text when Yakov is in a good situation when he feels good when he's triumphant Etc he's called Israel and when he struggles when he there's a a portion in pares mik Kates where the name goes back and forth what happens is uh it starts with yov thinking that Yosef is dead he then hears that Yosef is alive he becomes the Israel he goes down to he starts going down to Egypt and he's skipping down the road and Hashem appears to him and says don't don't be afraid he's not he's not afraid he's he's happy you should be afraid you're going down into GH you're starting a period that will be difficult for your Nation for your progyny sure enough who wakes up from the dream not Israel Yakov so what you see is the use of the name determines and it's prophetic in terms of our own experience there are times when we will be Israel and there are times when we'll be akov and one hopes and I guess with this will end one hopes that in our difficult and complex time we will come out of it as Israel out of it as isra all right [Music]